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Live at 9 with Kevin Scarbinsky: Pat White and Nick Saban should know better

Nick Saban asked about Pat White claims - May 15, 2014Alabama coach Nick Saban is asked about Pat White's claims of improper recruiting tactics used before he was the coach of the Tide. Saban was in Nashville for the Crimson Caravan when a local reporter asked him for a response. (Michael Casagrande/mcasagrande@al.com)

He's a professional football player with the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League. He's also played in the NFL, and he was a four-year starter at quarterback for West Virginia.

He's been in the public eye for years. He should know the dangers of throwing out an accusation on social media, like accusing Alabama of offering him a Corvette to sign with the Crimson Tide out of Daphne High School a decade ago.

But he did it anyway.

If White has a story to tell, he should tell it to the NCAA.

Nick Saban should know better, too.

He's been in the public eye for decades as a head football coach. He should know the folly of finishing his response to a question about White's allegation by muttering under his breath, "Kiss my ass." Especially in the presence of cameras.

But he did it anyway even though he wasn't even the coach at Alabama at the time. He recruited White to play defensive back at LSU.

Instead of getting upset with the reporter who asked the question, Saban would be better served to have a social media expert talk to his players about what they post for public consumption. White's Facebook post came in response to a Twitter post from Alabama running back Derrick Henry that included a picture of his new car, a tricked-out red Dodge Challenger.

In a perfect world, there would be nothing wrong with a player being proud of his new car and showing it off. But in the college football world, especially in this state, where rival fans want to believe the other side is cheating like bandits, that kind of photo is like tossing a pork chop to a pack of wolves.

Henry should know better than to throw out that kind of red meat.

None of this is anything new. Accusations and assumptions pile up around the Alabama and Auburn programs like championship rings. Finger-pointing is easy. It's also sad.